Dominican Republic sets crackdown on prostitution

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) — Prostitution has long been practiced openly in the Dominican Republic but that could soon change.

The Dominican attorney general says clients of prostitutes and anyone who makes money off the work of prostitutes will face arrest in a crackdown on the sex trade. Attorney General Francisco Dominguez says the government wants to fight the trafficking of women, especially minors.

Dominican law doesn’t specifically prohibit prostitution but it does outlaw pandering and trafficking. Dominguez told reporters Wednesday that clients of prostitutes can be charged as accomplices to pandering and can face 10 to 15 years in prison.

No one has been arrested yet and it’s not clear how strictly this will be enforced since the justice system is already overburdened.